WOMEN AND THE SOCIAL-MOVEMENTS OF THE 1960S - ACTIVISTS, ENGAGED OBSERVERS, AND NONPARTICIPANTS

Many women in the generation that attended college during the 1960s ha ve reported that they were influenced by the social movements of that era, even women who did not participate in them. In addition to politi cal activists, social movements also appear to include ''engaged obser vers''-individuals who are attentive to movement writings and activiti es, and express moral and even financial support for them, but who tak e no other action. Although activism in a movement may be the best pre dictor of future political action, engaged observation,nay be related to other indicators of political socialization, such as a powerful fel t impact of the movement and well-developed political attitudes. Evide nce to support this notion is drawn from studies of three samples of c ollege-educated white and black women.